Despite there being hundreds of decently-paying jobs available, very few people are applying for them.
Unemployment in Iceland has been declining since the beginning of the year, and is now at about 6%. Many people remain without work, but they number more than there should be – or so says the Directorate of Labour.
About 400 jobs are available, says directorate manager Gissur Pétursson, yet only 43 people have been hired for them from unemployment insurance in the previous month.
Kolbein Pálsson, the director of Job.is, has a similar story. He says that there are 30% more available jobs on his website than in the previous month, but applications have not increased.
One possible explanation for this, it is believed, is that people with children have been weighing how much they receive from unemployment insurance versus how much these jobs would pay, and have decided to stay on the former.
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